Darlene's Digest

Hey! I'm 20 years younger than it says on my driver's license! This was an accurate reflection of how I feel mentally, despite the bad knee and sagging bits: You Are 31 Years Old Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax. What Age Do You Act?

Thankfulness I'm thankful that I have both my boys in for the holiday, even if the elder son's plane was delayed by three hours and involved a late night drive to Orlando. That's a small upset in the universe compared to being with your family. I'm grateful that the younger son's enjoying his college days at UF. I'm grateful that my husband turns 60 this year, having survived cancer and a heart attack. I'm also grateful to my husband for the long hours he works to make sure we're taken care of, and for many years ago being smarter than most of his peers and planning well for retirement. I'm thankful that my hardworking agent snagged contracts overseas, and I'm thankful that that muse of mine who keeps falling asleep on the job is finally getting her act together. I'm grateful for my good health and the continued health of my family. I'm glad that I hate shopping and have zero desire to go out tomorrow to see what's on sale. And as...

Is it just what I'm reading, or has the entire concept of writing a scene in one POV flown out the window? I admit that in one or two scenes of mine, usually when couples are making love, I might switch point of view at the end, but I avoid going back and forth jumping inside heads. To me that's just lazy writing. If you don't have the skill to convey all you need to say while within one character's POV, maybe you should re-write the scene. The mistress of this skill was the late Dorothy Dunnett. She wrote her classic Lymond Chronicles, six books, never showing anything from the hero's POV except for one sentence when the hero realizes he's in love with the heroine . That's it. Everything you know about Francis Lymond is from other people's impressions of him, yet if you ask any fan he or she tell you that Lymond is one of the most fully fleshed out characters in modern lit. And a great romantic hero. There's an exception to every rule, of cour...

Got some writing done on the 4th book yesterday, but not enough. Part of the problem--and this has happened before--is the next book I'm thinking about writing keeps intruding. When that happens I jot down the ideas and dialogue from what's tentatively book #5, but I get frustrated with myself because I don't want to think about those nameless characters just yet, I want to stay focused on Jack and Sophia, the characters in my WIP. On the other hand, I did uncover the dialogue where Sophia finally tells Jack she loves him, right after she shoots him. Now all I need to do is fill in the 200 or so pages in between where I am now and where that happens and I'm done.

4 Stars from Romatic Times for Captain Sinister's Lady ! CAPTAIN SINISTER'S LADY by Darlene Marshall RT Rating: 4 Stars Category: HISTORICAL Setting: 1820 High Seas and Florida Publisher: Amber Quill Press Published: December 2006 Buy Now at Amazon $13.26 Marshall's third book showcases the author's growth and increasing talent. The not-so-young hero will appeal to over-30 readers as well as any woman who yearns for a man to sweep her off her feet. The romance and sensuality are hot enough to fire a ship and tender enough to bring tears to a romantic's eyes. Summary: Widow Amanda Stephenson is on her way to America to take her place as a semi-servant in a relative's household before starting her own business. Her marriage had been a good one, based on friendship, but now she wonders if there could be more. Her curiosity is stretched to the limit when she meets Morgan Roberts, aka Captain Sinister, after the ship she's traveling ...